The Darkest Hour
by Masterful Gamer Jack
Summary: A shiny Lucario and a Zoroark-human hybrid are fighting in a near ruin world, but what's the significance of the fight? Rated T for strong language.
1. The End

**Yes, I know, "What am I doing?" is probably going through your mind right now. You are reading words written in the English language while I'm doing something else. But this is nothing new, another story on the inter-webs has been put up, joy. Anyway, I waste time, onto story!**

"You really think you could beat me? You are- Gah!" a Zoroark-human hybrid shouted as he was blasted away into a wall by an Aura Sphere, causing it to crumble.

A shiny Lucario then slowly closed the hundred meter distance between him and the Zoroark hybrid under the remnants of the wall, obviously straining himself to do so, to fifty meters before saying, "I seriously don't want to kill you, but if I must, I will to stop the horrid plans the damned mind of yours created!"

A chuckle came from the rubble before being thrown up by the Zoroark hybrid underneath, him continuing with "You and your wretched ideas are damned, not mine! I'm doing a favor to the world, killing the Legends and Arceus and destroying their tyranny over Pokémon and humans alike!" is what was said before he collapsed, straining himself to the limit to stand, to try and finally defeat me.

"Have you even considered what will happen if Arceus dies!? What if it's the end of everything!? What are you trying to do, rise up as a god once Arceus is dead!?" I said, fiercely protesting his idea.

"Then we die. Life holds no meaning other than to act like fools in front of the Legendaries and die, no more meaning than that."

"...You are severely mistaken, you bastard! Life holds more meaning; you just fail to see the full meaning! I can't do much more, so I'll have to land this hit to end this and avoid everything you throw at me."

"Same here."

We both draw our weapons, mine a strange metal staff, his two daggers, and get into our stance taught to us a decade or so earlier and concentrate. Concentrate on the ground between us, the opponent, the wind, all we learned to prepare for the outcome of our fate.

We then shout and rush the other. He tries stabbing me in the heart with both daggers, but I move so one misses and the dagger in his left hand makes it into my left shoulder. I wince, but continue with my attack, landing it perfectly in the back of his head, causing him to fall unconscious and me to fall down. I get up in pain, remove the dagger, and throw it into the rubble of the wall, and mutter, "I won for now, but he will chase me until I'm dead before going for Arceus. Better start my plan..."

** Alright, seems like a good place to stop. Peace!**


	2. New Competition

**I'm back with more. Alright, where were we... Right, after that chapter. But hey, I'm here for you guys, taking time out of my schedule and writing for you. Hey, I'm a giving person... most the time. So read it!**

"Really, I kill someone to become a leader, and you do the same thing without killing the leader three years later, and I get scolded at and you're praised? We practically did the same act!" I cut my brother, a Zoroark-human hybrid, off before he continues,

"Actually, it might be because many different reasons. Yes, we both fought fairly, but you confounded him with speed and agility, going for the kill in record time. I knew my opponent's strengths and weaknesses, so I altered my fighting style to give him a chance. I not only let him have the first move, but let him choose the terrain, and I fought him without using my powers, fighting him like a human would. Hell, I fought with hand to hand combat, and he's a better defender physically than specially. I took ten minutes, yes, but won at a disadvantage."

"So you're saying you're the better fighter out of you and I? Ha, fat chance!"

"I wasn't assuming anything, I was stating that I know how to take down an opponent at a severe disadvantage," I tried explaining, but he cut in,

"Well, least I'm not-" That's when I saw that Lavense had heard enough.

"Stop, both of you, now!" We both stopped immediately, knowing we were in deep shit. "You both fought well to earn the spot you have now, but fighting over who did better and got more appreciation from me is futile, nearly no way to decide that unless I tell you." We both stopped glaring at one another and looked at him to hear his decision. "Now, I think that you fought equally well. Zankata, you took down a foe in record time. Seriously, you won the record of taking down the leader in the shortest time, proving that you are a threat early on. Ryoku," or me, a Lucario-human hybrid, "you definitely earned the position you got just now by putting yourself at a disadvantage, albeit taking ten minutes to pin him, but it proves you can find a way to win in a corner over time. Now, about affection, neither beat the other. Zankata, I scolded you because I was hoping you'd realize that killing isn't necessary to be the best, and Ryoku proved my words. He won the best spot without killing the previous leader while at a disadvantage, that takes skill. But to find out who's better, Zankata has to fight Arnold under the same criteria you set, Ryoku. That alright, Arnold?" The Chesnought then said

"It's fine with me, long as it's tomorrow. Gotta rest up from this fight. S'alright if I leave for the day Ryoku?" I reply only with

"Fine by me, you did enough today." He nodded and left the training room after saying,

"Thanks. And if you need any help with something, I'm here to help."

After Arnold left, Zankata complained "Why don't I-"

"Just fight Ryoku? No, I will not have you fight each other now. I'm 18 now, you both are 13, I'd have you fight me with you blindfolded."

"Man, making restrictions harsh enough to repel a Goodra, friendliest Pokémon to exist."

"No, I don't want you to kill each other. You are my only family left, our mom sacrificed herself for me, our dad died for our safety for a few more days before we were taken. And you want to fight Ryoku, possibly killing him! That's not allowed in my book." I then saw Zankata bow his head in defeat, saying

"You're right, I might end up killing Ryoku on accident. But realize that he and I will fight someday, maybe for fun, maybe for the fate of the world, but it is inevitable." I then heard Lavense sigh in relief, saying

"I'm glad that you understand, but I knew a fight is going to come no matter what. When, I've no idea. C'mon, better leave to rest up guys, you have a fight to do tomorrow, Zankata, and you should recover from the fight, Ryoku."

_The next day..._

"...7...8...9...10! It's over, Zankata!" was what I said when the fight ended.

Panting, the Zoroark-hybrid jumped off the Chesnought and asked, "What's my time, Lavense?" I then saw Lavense mutter something to himself, and shook his head. He finally said,

"Of all the shit I've been through, I never would of thought... Zankata, it took you 10 minutes. You tied with Ryoku for time!"

And, like twins, we shouted in perfect sync, "How the hell did we tie with each other? I thought I would win!" Arnold then came in and said, after laughing some,

"You two are brothers, you tied in time against me, and you said the same thing at the same time! Kahaha!" We all then started laughing at the results, not caring about the intensity of our anger from yesterday, with Arnold saying,

"It it just me, or did that fight feel longer than Ryoku's fight?" We all stopped and thought about it, and we had different answers,

"It did feel longer to me." was my reply.

"To me, it felt shorter." Zankata uttered bluntly.

"I couldn't tell the difference, I was timing both matches." was Lavense's excuse.

Arnold shrugged it off, saying "Ah well, just a feeling."

**Stoppin' here for a reason: to tell you something. The story is skipping the next 6 years, so Ryoku and Zankata are 19 and Lavense is 25, and there's a personality change in one of their lives. Also, I'll try to update ASAP when a chapter's done. Anyway, see ya in the next chapter.**


	3. Lavense's Visitor

**Who! What! When! Where! Why! Obviously in Lavense's view! Start reading! Now!**

**View Rankings: 1)USA with 10 views. 2)South Africa with 3 views.3)UK, Costa Rica, Brazil, Singapore, and Iceland with 1 view.**

_"What the...!"_ I thought after jolting up from my slumber. _"I just saw... Zankata murder Ryoku, then I... I saw him kill... Arceus. Relax, Lavense, relax... Breathe in... Breathe out... Breathe in... Out... Think I've control of the situation, just a nightmare, not real. But I still fear..."_ I look at the clock, and it reads 11:57PM. _"Damn, slept for about an hour, but, is..."_ And I then see that the bathroom had a light on. "Dammit, must've left it on before going to sleep. Better turn it off," I muttered. So I shuffle to my bathroom door and switch the lights off... Only to find they were off and that there still was a light on. _"The hell? The lights are off yet there's still light in there."_ So I entered the bathroom, seeing light coming from the mirror. I thought I was thinking things, but no, after slapping myself, it still was glowing in the dark room. _"What the..."_ was what I thought as I looked into the mirror. _"Why's it glowing... Wait, is that... the-" _Then a bright flash blinded me for a 30 seconds, spouting curses at whoever pranked. Then he heard a voice,

"Shut it, you might wake the Legendaries residing in the halls around here!"

I shut up immediately. I knew who was talking to me and where I was, but not why. My eyes then adjusted to the light: I was in the Hall of Origin, and Arceus was looking down at me.

"My lord Arceus, why am I deserving of this meeting?"

"I called you here because of something Dialga and I found a month ago: a dreadful future that means the end of the world if not avoided."

"But why-"

"You're here because it rests on Ryoku's shoulders, but I can't tell him directly due to a law that only Jirachi can disobey, even I can't disobey them. It states that we can't directly affect the lives of those still living."

"Ryoku? What is he up against? Who is he up against?"

After sighing, Arceus said it. The word, _that_ word, that put me in disbelief.

"Zankata."

I was in shock. Zankata was right, them fighting is inevitable. Nothing I could do would prevent the fate of the world.

"What... is Zankata... planning to do?"

"He is planning..."

_An hour later..._

"...and he will then go for me. After all that, he will have gained enough power to challenge me and win."

"Zankata, why... he... damn it! Damn it to the seven hells! I... I'm brother to a hell-bent Zoroark hybrid... What does Ryoku need to do to defeat him, milord?"

"Multiple things are needed, and I'll supply a few things. First off, I have a stone that reacts to another stone, the Lucarionite. I'll give you this, but you must have him find an unclaimed Mega Stone. He then must come to Stark Mountain's deepest cavern and talk to Hetran after finding the next item. When he holds the Lucarionite in hand, those stones will glow with an orange aura. Next, there is a weapon I had Hetran forge when I learned that fate, and it was completed two days ago, whereupon it's completion, I had Giratina hide it in the Distortion World for safe keeping. Finally, I have a gift to you. Xerneas, come to my side."

Xerneas, apparently comes in immediately, a blue and black deer with a set of antlers of a lighter blue color than it's body.

"You have summoned me, father?"

"Xerneas, this is Lavense Zandithsson, older brother of Ryoku and Zankata Zandithsson. I know this is sudden, but I want you to teach him how to use Life Pulse. I know what you think, but hear me out: Zankata may destroy the world, but Ryoku is there to oppose him. Lavense here is to guide Ryoku, and he needs Life Pulse to make sure neither die in their clashes. I talked to Zygarde, Yveltal, and Giratina about this: Zygarde fully agrees with me once Dialga and I found he's first to be targeted. Yveltal, not wanting death and disease to run rampant if Zygarde dies, also agreed to this. Outnumbered, Giratina said he agrees when I told him he was after Zygarde."

Obviously beaten, Xerneas said "Alright father, I'll do so, but I need Yveltal for his training."

"So be it. Yveltal, co-"

"Don't need to say it twice, dad!" was all that was said until I saw a wyvern-like creature with a red underside and black wings, tail, and back swoop in.

"Now Xerneas, why do you need Yveltal?"

"To practice, he needs to give life to some clay Pokémon we made for practice. But since we only have five, we need to remove the life, so we need Oblivion Wing to use after they all are alive to reverse the process."

"Fair enough. Go to the Paused-Time Dimension to train," and Arceus opened a portal to a dimension that was different shades of gray. "Go now, and train until he mastered it!"

**And... WE'RE DONE HERE! Well, next chapter's in the dimension of unmoving time, the origin of standstill, what was before Arceus created the universe! Ciao!**


	4. Life at a Standstill

**Ay! Ow's my favorite readers? ...I'll stop the "Jamaican" accent now. But stop right there, I want you to read this.**

**View Rankings: 1) the U.S.A. 2) Australia 3) Singapore 4) South Africa, Jamaica, and the Netherlands 5) Costa Rica, Iceland, Brazil, and the U.K.**

"So, see those brown statues in the distance, Lavense?" I don't have to look hard to find them, they stick out like a shiny Gogoat in a herd. "First, I'll have you master the feeling of the flow if life."

"Wait, 'flow of life'? What is that?" I hear a sigh, and look over and see that Xerneas and Yveltal are covered in a soft glow, gradually changing into humans. Xerneas now has long hair the same color as his antlers, a pair of jeans, and a blue and black T-shirt, and Yveltal has short black hair, a red and black hooded jacket, and a dark red pair of jeans. "And how are you humans?"

"The terms we use to explain this are the Japanese word for energy, ki, and the Chinese word for the flow of energy, chi. Your ki is only part of the world's chi. When you die, all ki in your body flows out to the world's chi. When you are created, ki flows to you from the world's chi. As the being of life, it is my job to maintain the flow of chi to ki, or keep life going. Yveltal, as being of death, reverses the order, so his job is to maintain the flow of ki to chi, or stop life when he deems necessary. We both balance each other out, because having chi under the lower "danger level" will cause the apocalypse, and having chi over the upper "danger level" means the world will be unable to sustain life forever more, but one being has equal ki to another unless you compare yourself to the Legendaries. And, for your other question, Arceus gave us the power to have a human form to do things that our natural form might be hindered with. For example, Arceus had to help me understand the concept on life's balance I just told you the first time, and had to show me the correct way to meditate to unlock **Geomancy** and **Life Pulse**, the move that allows me to control life, and did the same with Yveltal and **Oblivion Wing**. You follow?"

I was in awe at the knowledge Xerneas has and divulged unto me, replying "I believe I do."

"Now, first question: Do you know how to meditate?"

I cleared my head of any distractions, noticing that they both were on the ground, ready to show me if I didn't and that we were about ten meters away from the statues, but replied "Yes, I've meditated before."

"Good, so we don't have to explain the basics, so get ready to meditate." So I sat on the ground, faced them, and got into the most commonly used position of meditation, but decided against it and got out of it for the form I'm most comfortable in. I extended my legs, then hooked my feet together, then brought the interlocked body parts nine inches away from the groin area, also noting that Xerneas was doing something. Yveltal then saw that I was done shifting around, then asked,

"Is that you most comfortable position, because you might be doing this for hours." Xerneas was done messing around with what he was doing. As he was coming back, the area behind him was changing to a forest setting, and was spreading over to us. Xerneas came back and got into his position before the forest setting spread to where we were. Once it was done spreading, we were raised off the ground by a large tree stump. I then asked,

"How did you change the dimension like that?"

"Let's start meditating before I answer," was what Xerneas said. I did not disobey him, and focused on my chest, my heart rather. I controlled my breathing. I focused on the sounds around us. After a few minutes, Xerneas continued, "I just asked Palkia if she could change the landscape of the dimension to a forest. Us being on a stump, well, that's her doing. But let's begin with another point: chakra. Chakra is the collection of ki in the center of the chest. Chakra is the reason Pokémon can use special moves and have abilities. Without it, some Pokémon would easily be lower than humans, while some are unaffected much. If you lost it, you couldn't use moves like **Aura Sphere**, **Heal Pulse**, and **Psychic**. Moves under the "Special" category would be unavailable to the Pokémon. Since a Lucario is equally balanced in Attack and Sp. Atk, a Lucario would most likely be on par with humans, if not slightly above. And, if you paid attention, I said chakra is made of ki, so no chakra means no life. You'd be dead. Now would be a good time to see what you retained from me."

I breathed in, then exhaled before saying "Chi is the world's energy, too much or too little of it means the end of the world. Ki is a being's energy, obtained when given your life, lost when giving your life, but it always is connected to Earth's chi. Chakra is the collection of ki in the center of the chest, your life force stems from there, and is the reason we have life. Weaker beings have the same amount of ki as all other beings, but their chakra is smaller, making them weaker." My eyes jolted open and I gasped, realizing the depth of the words I said, but when I gather my senses, I see Yveltal offering a hand to get up, while Xerneas says,

"You have finally realized the depth of the meaning of life; You are ready to attempt using** Life Pulse**."

_At the statues..._

"You have learned three of the four lessons of life, now the final lesson, I think you're acquainted with this one: Aura. Aura is the barrier separating your life and mine, mine and Arceus', you and all other beings. To use **Life Pulse**, you must open a channel between your aura and the being's aura or a corpse's lingering aura. Since you opened the channel, you and the being/corpse are one, and since you are connected to the world, you and the being don't have the ki you and them need to live, so the chi sends the amount of ki they need to live. Once you see that the ki has stopped flowing, you destroy the channel between you and them. But there is a difference between me and you using it. As being of life, I don't need to touch you to use the move, but you do. Also, you don't do anything, just make and break the channel."

"Alright," was what I said as I faced the statue of a Rhyperior. I then touched the warm surface if the clay figure...

_Three PD Dimension hours later..._

Palkia was waiting in the main hall of the Hall of Origin. When she saw a portal open, and a Lucario followed by the Kalos Legendaries came out, she came over to greet herself to Lavense and tell the others that she can handle it from here.

"So, I assume you did it, Lavense?" She inquired, with me replying

"I did, but I wonder what that nightmare I had meant?" She stopped smiling and then asked,

"Wait, a nightmare? Could you explain what you saw?" I hesitated, then said

"Sure. I saw Ryoku and Zankata fighting in a cave, and saw Zankata kill Ryoku. But that wasn't it; after Ryoku fell to the ground, it changed, showing a picture of Zankata stabbing Arceus in the heart." She nodded, then said

"I'll have to consult Dialga, Darkrai, and Cresselia later and contact you on what we conclude it means."

"Wait, why?"

"You may have seen a vision of a future from another dimension like ours, but with a different planetary outcome. But for now, you might want some sleep."

"Right. It was a pleasure meeting you all." was all I said before I was out cold.

"Good luck, you'll need it."

**Well, that's an interesting chapter. Took me quite a while after reading about meditation and chakra. Until next chapter, and a great Thanksgiving to all!**


	5. The Plan

**Hey, life's too short, so just read!**

**View Rankings: America's probably going to lead this for the entirety of the story, so I'm not going to include it. Now, 1) Singapore 2) Australia 3) Greece 4) Norway 5) The Netherlands, Jamaica, and South Africa**

_Ryoku's POV_

"Hey, Ryoku, I need to talk to you privately."

"Sure. Where should we talk?"

"In my apartment. Let's go."

_Lavense's apartment, 5 minutes later..._

"So, what's so important?"

"Might wanna sit down." I did so before he continued, "Some time around midnight, Arceus had a meeting with me concerning you, Zankata, and the future, probably a bleak one because..."

_An hour later..._

"WHAT!" I shouted, obviously enraged at his scheme.

"It's true, it came from Arceus' lips with Dialga's conformation, and he doesn't lie about the future when everything's in peril." He then came up to me and put his hands on my shoulders and looked me straight in the eyes, saying, "It may rest on your shoulders, but I'll be with you at every step of the path to the fight. I will not abandon you. Even if we are separated, I'll search tirelessly for you until we're back together."

"T-thanks, you're the best." I then recollected myself, then said, "It's clear to me that Arceus sent me something to assist me rather than going out blindly. What is it?"

"You're becoming a true adult. Anyway, this," as he pulled out the stone, "is the thing Arceus gave me to give to you."

"A stone?"

"Not just any stone. This is a Lucarionite, a stone specific to Lucario to unlock some kind of special power. This is specifically made for you to use, but is useless alone. Arceus told me that he also made it possible for you to find the stone to allow you to unlock the power by holding your Lucarionite. Those stones are highlighted by an orange aura. Here, someone might have hid that stone in here before I got this room." He then tossed the stone to me, which I caught. I then checked my surroundings, but to no avail. I then tell him "No dice."

He sweatdropped and said, "Well, let me continue to explain. The first item is the Lucarionite, the second the stone we need to find. The third item is a weapon Arceus had Heatran forge for you, but it was finished recently, so Arceus had Giratina hide it in the Distortion World. The fourth and final item was bestowed upon me by Xerneas and Yveltal, the move **Life Pulse**."

"**Life Pulse**?"

"Yes, it was given to me to revive you if you die at any time before Arceus deems that the future has been saved and/or if Zankata dies in the fight, because he knows he's a good Pokémon, and he believes that he's been possessed to be unable to see good, so he wants neither of you to die, but wants you to expel the being and defeat it. It also gives me immortality until they remove the move."

"So, he wants me to keep Zankata alive and destroy the being possessing him?" and I got a nod of comfirmation. "Doesn't seem too difficult, we just have to-"

"Keep him contained here? I wish. If we keep going as we are, he'll destroy this place in a couple of weeks, so we have to beat him to the punch. My next question is, how?"

I pondered it for a moment, and realized he's right, how are we supposed to stop him and keep him alive? Then I remembered:

_"And if you need any help with something, I can help."_

"Arnold!"

"What about him?"

"He said he will help me when I need it."

"Great, where is he at this time?"

"I believe he's in the training room B now. Let's go!"

_Training Room B, 15 minutes later..._

We entered the room, and see that he's using a punching bag, so I shout, "Hey, Arnold!"

He looks over and says "Ryoku, Lavense, how's it going?"

Lavense replies with a blunt answer, "We need your help, I'll explain later once we get there."

"All fine with me, just let me-" and punched it once, breaking the chains and having it hit the wall. We were astonished, then he turned around and said, "Now, where were we? Ah yes, going to tell me what you needed help with?"

I blinked a couple times before saying "Uhh, right. Come with us."

_Lavense's apartment, 75 minutes later..._

"...Whoa. So you need my help formulating an escape plan to escape the facility? Just so happens I was thinking of escaping myself, but you need my help, so it's just the three of us es-"

"No, we're taking those I select and us."

"Well then, brief those the day before we leave on this plan: we just hightail it in the middle of the night. Should be easy."

"WHAT? We could just leave? Why wasn't I aware of this?"

Arnold punched him to the ground before he continued, "There are guards, but they sleep all the time. I've been able to leave the facility and just enjoy the night sky I grew up with above me multiple times, but only through stealthily leaving the building. Even then, the guards weren't alerted since I stuck to the wall, but escaping is hard as hell. More than fifty tried escaping, one escaped in the same condition he started with."

"Oh... How are we-"

"Spiky Shield, I wouldn't try escaping without a way to protect myself. As a Chesnought, it's my job to protect others, so I'm responsible for protecting those who come with us."

"Alright, now it's a matter of who. I'll address up to three people of all of our choosing, so up to three for all of us, to come a day before we leave."

Lavense then asked, "What should we do as we wait to evacuate?"

Arnold took a guess and said, "Are we going to act cool about it like nothing's different?"

"I still wonder how you lost to me, but yes, that's precisely what you should do. And we leave in a week."

**Know what this needs? Needs a writer with more confidence. That's something I've noticed about myself. Auf Wiedersehen!**


	6. Story Update

**Hey readers, writers, and all in-between, this isn't really another progress-the-story chapter, rather a message to all you out there reading. I've noticed I've left some, rather obscure, details on things. But you must have some questions why I did so. Simple: as ****Masterful Gamer**** Jack, I draw inspiration from games I've played, seen, etc. Now, since of that, I'm issuing a challenge. Practically a "Find the Reference" treasure hunt. Although this seems unrelated to the criteria I said above, it's related. This story is based off Emeralddragon1's ****_Inferno_****. Good story, I recommend reading that if you haven't already before progressing. If you have questions, feel free to ask me, whether in the reviews section or PM. Also, this chapter was the one who pushed my story word count past 5000! Thank you all for reading, without you, I wouldn't continue. Peace!**


	7. Gathering of Champions

**Guten Tag. Another chapter posted to read, another one done, one more chapter closer to the end.**

_Small meeting room_

I was entering the room with Arnold and Lavense and were greeted by those we called.

Arnold then took the initiative to say "Well, what a nice surprise. Now we can start the meeting."

So we all got around the table in the room before I started explaining. "You must be wondering why we called you here is my guess. You're here for a reason: because we decided you were exceptional among the rest of the other Pokémon."

A female Typhlosion, who I believe Arnold said to be named Pyra, then asked "Why are we exceptional?"

Arnold answered "Because the three of us evaluated everyone who entered the training rooms, then made cuts on who were above the rest."

Lavense picked up, "Now you know how you arrived to this meeting, it's time for why you're here."

I cut him off there, saying "We have chosen you all to accompany us as we escape this helluva place. We guarantee that we will help each other to escape, so escape is our first, last, and only priority, with freedom our goal. You are here because we decided that you all deserved freedom and that you will all survive if we attempt escape."

Arnold then drew a map showing the layout of the facility. "Alright, here's the layout of the facility: We can escape," and pointed at the north and south walls of the building we're in, and continued "through these areas." He then pointed at where we were. "We'll meet back here tomorrow at 2300 hours, then travel through either exit. Outside of the north exit's door, there are some cameras that alert the guards unless you are a human. The one at the south exit doesn't have a camera, although it is guarded by two unarmed humans. Also, they can easily alert the guards if they're harmed some; I believe we can trap them, but they can still contact the guards. So, what exit should we take? Lavense, Ryoku, and I were thinking that the northern exit is our better bet since it's a straight shot to our exit, but a fight is inevitable unless we're quick enough."

Pyra then said, "I may be older than all of you, but going straight to the gates of freedom seems better than taking a chance of going out unnoticed."

That's when we noticed that they started to agree with our reasoning. Lavense then said, "Alright, that's 7 of 7 agreeing with us, so we go through the front at 11:00 tomorrow night and fight for freedom."

I then continued. "So, the plan is to run for freedom and to take down whoever stands in our way. We meet back here in 27 hours, so if there's anything you own that you want to take, you alone can carry, and it isn't very loud, you may take it. Otherwise, act as if this meeting never happened around others and we'll see you in 27 hours. Also, if you're not there, either send somebody who is also evacuating to tell me you'll meet us at the exit or you're left behind."

Everyone left but one, a shiny Lucario, who came to talk to me. "So you're Ryoku. You seem like a better leader than I thought."

I was confused, so I asked "I'm sorry, have we met somewhere before?"

He returned my remark with a shrug and said "Who knows? But anyway, I'm Ryoku."

I was really confused, someone else with the same name as I do and same species as I am. He then noticed my confusion and chuckled some before saying, "Oh, you must be wondering why a Lucario has the same name as you. From where I'm from there are two legendary heroes, both by the name Ryoku. I was born before the second hero's legacy was born, making him a legend. But anyway, the first one was able to be the first Lucario to utilize something humans now call Mega Evolution, and first Pokémon trained by a human. Through that he was able to stop a human war and several Pokémon clan wars. Because of this, many of my village named their eldest child after him in the first few years, now it's a fairly common name. The other one valiantly fought his brother to stop his hell bent ideas, but lost by being pushed off a cliff by his merciless brother." Only then did I notice him having a little trouble continuing. That's when I knew that the second hero was related to him or someone he was close to, so I told him

"It's alright. You must've loved Ryoku dearly, whether he was a friend or family member. I think I know how you feel, or at least I can picture it. If I were to lose my older brother Lavense, I would be crippled in grief and would mourn him for a long time. If I were to lose my brother Zankata, I would mourn for him for a short time and move on. But, either way, losing a family member could impact one's life greatly. You have so much to live for, so honor the dead, but don't let it cloud your vision."

He nodded before embracing me, and said "Thank you for listening to me and showing me that my father was a great person, albeit living to be 22, and I shouldn't be burdened by his death. Thank you for all you did for me just then," as he let go of me.

I was now wondering about Ryoku's father, how old he would be, so I asked him as he was waking out the door "By the way, how old would your father be if he was alive?"

He gave a simple reply "37, 38 tomorrow."

I chuckled before realizing that his father's birthday was tomorrow, like mine. "Hmm, just a coincidence."

**The plan's been set in motion, the wheels of fate are turning, and NOT GOIN' TO CONTINUE MY THOUGHT. S'alright if I leave it here? ...No? Well too bad, so this means au revoir (French for goodbye).**


	8. Get Ready to Roll

**Hey, MGJ is back again, quite possibly for the last time in 2013. Due to habit of me playing any games I get for Christmas and the family reunion I have to set up, this'll probably the last chapter of the story I'll write this year, so there's something I need to tell you. Although I have been updating this story about every two weeks, it's not fully updated. I'm writing, but I've been about three chapters ahead of you. Y'see, when I started, I released the first 2-3 chapters on the same day, and I'm doing the same for the end, so if this is Chapter Eight, then I'm working on Chapter Eleven, 'K? Alright, to the story! View Rankings: 1) Singapore; 2) Australia; 3) Greece; 4) Norway; 5) The Netherlands, Jamaica, South Africa, and the United Kingdom**

_Small meeting room, 2255 hours_

Lavense and I have been waiting for an hour now, waiting for the others to arrive for the escape. So far Arnold, Pyra, and a Golurk that Arnold said doesn't talk much, so he only learned that the Golurk's name was Jürgen.

Two more just walked in, Ryoku, who was wearing a black hooded cloak, and a Doublade named Dyfallis. My only reply is

"Cutting it close, aren't you? Three minutes before we leave." The Doublade then interrupted me, saying

"Forgive us, but before we came here, Johnson told me to tell you that he and Kydra are going to meet you at the exit."

I reply with a sigh and "Thank you for letting me know, now the only one we're missing is-" Then a Marowak bursts into the room, saying

"I sincerely apologize for..." and he looked around the room, seeing that we're still here. "... Damn, gotta stop cutting it so close."

I then continued "- Lang, and damn right you should start coming to things earlier than being seconds early." I then faced the clock, it reading 11:00. I then face everyone and say "This is our final minutes inside this pit. Now's the time to escape this place and become free Pokémon, so I ask: Are you ready?" I received a yes from everyone, so I said "Alright, now let's move." So we turn and leave for the front exit.

_Front exit, 11:05 P.M._

"We arrived at the exit. Dyfallis, I thought you said-"

"That we'd be here? Yes he did and yes we are." Then a Sceptile and Kingdra step into the light and said "Well, we believe it's time to leave. Are we all in agreement?"

I then facepalmed before continuing "One, will I ever stop being interrupted by you all, and two, yes we're ready." I then face the door the humans that transport Pokémon use to leave and ponder out loud, "Now, how are we going to leave?" Lavense then strides up next to me, chuckles and says

"Everyone comes to a point where they didn't prepare and can't do things easily. Luckily, that's why I chose Jürgen, in case we had a problem like this." He then looks back at the automated statue and nodded, receiving one back. He then returned to me and said "Now, if it's in your best interest to stop Zankata, move ten feet to your left in ten seconds and follow me." I do what he said, with everyone but Jürgen and Lavense, who went right, doing the same as me. Once we stop moving, Lavense nods to Jürgen again, but looks back at the wall we're facing instead of awaiting it's reply. I then feel the ground shake, instinctively looking around and seeing everyone tensing up and Jürgen getting ready to... Damn it! Lavense must want panic to ensue.

"Lavense, what the hell are you thinking!? You're asking for trouble!" His only reply is

"You have any idea other than having a Golurk as a battering ram? Jürgen, go now!"

**Well, would ya look at the time! I sincerely, and I mean sincerely, apologize for cutting you off like this. I didn't want to do this, but my parents are making me do so: Thanks for reading the chapter, I hope that you will stay tuned, I wish I could write faster, but I must bid you adieu.**


End file.
